Jun. 27, 2013

Written by

Beacon staff

A dispute has arisen over whether a fire hydrant was useable after a fire destroyed a home north of Windsor on Monday.

Windsor-Severance Fire Rescue responded to the house at 37607 Lee Lake Ave. seven minutes after the call came in at 10:13 p.m. WSFR was able to contain the fire to the house, which was fully engulfed when it arrived, and keep the fire from spreading to a nearby shop and other residences.

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined due to its catastrophic nature, said Herb Brady, Windsor-Severance Fire Rescue chief.

But Brady and a representative from the North Weld County Water District, manager Don Posselt, disagree as to whether a hydrant near the home was functioning properly at the time of the blaze.

After WSFR arrived on scene, a crew attempted to access a fire hydrant in the neighborhood only to find the 5-inch “steamer cap” stuck, Brady said. The steamer cap covers where fire hoses attach to the hydrant.

Brady said, “We use hydrants every day; it’s not a matter of them not knowing how to use a hydrant.”

WSFR officials say a hydrant near the home could not be opened due to a stuck “steamer cap.” But Posselt said the cap came off within 30 seconds when it was tested the following day. Posselt also said the hydrant was last maintained in July 2012 and that his district maintains all hydrants on a three-year rotating schedule, whereas the American Water Works Association requires such reviews once every five years.

Meantime, a meeting between Brady and Posselt to discuss the issue, originally scheduled for Tuesday, was called off.

Posselt sent an email to Brady on Tuesday saying, “Chief Brady, I am going to cancel our meeting today. Your position has already been stated quite emphatically leaving no room for discussion. I hope we can set another meeting under better conditions.”

But Brady told the Windsor Beacon on Thursday that the WSFR was “ready and willing to work with the water district.” No meeting had been scheduled as of Thursday afternoon.

Since the incident, WSFR has reached out to other water districts, including Fort Collins-Loveland Water District, with whom there has already been a meeting to discuss how to best utilize the water systems that are in place.

“Even though it’s not our equipment, we are not just crossing our arms and standing back on this one,” Brady said. “We’re going to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”